Oct 01 2020

NOAA Fishery Bulletin – Billfish

  • October 1, 2020

Catch and Release Only For Blue Marlin, White Marlin, and Roundscale Spearfish for the Rest of 2020 in All Areas of the Atlantic Ocean

Based on the best available landings information, NOAA Fisheries has determined that the Atlantic blue marlin, white marlin, and roundscale spearfish 250-landings limit has been met and exceeded for 2020. Under applicable regulations, only catch-and-release fishing is permitted for these species for the rest of the year.

Effective September 30, 2020, through December 31, 2020, NOAA Fisheries is requiring catch-and-release fishing only for Atlantic blue marlin, white marlin, and roundscale spearfish in all areas of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Caribbean.

HMS Angling and HMS Charter/Headboat category permit holders and persons aboard vessels permitted in the Atlantic tunas General category or Swordfish General Commercial that fish in registered Atlantic HMS Tournaments, may catch-and-release (or tag and release) Atlantic blue marlin, white marlin, and roundscale spearfish of all sizes. Atlantic sailfish may continue to be landed (retained) consistent with applicable regulations.

Anglers are reminded that Atlantic billfish that are released must be handled in a manner that will maximize survival, and without removing the fish from the water. For additional information on safe handling, see the “Careful Catch-and-Release” brochure.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/10/01/noaa-fishery-bulletin-billfish/

Sep 27 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • September 27, 2020

Here comes October …. a time of transition. Our summertime species start leaving, the waters are less crowded and fish are very active.

When weather cooperates it’s a great time of the year to be on the water. Lately large swells from offshore storms have made ocean inlets in Virginia and North Carolina challenging, but things are improving and those venturing out to the deep are catching sea bass, tilefish, swordfish, blue and white marlin, wahoo, dolphin and tuna. (Above) Captain David Wright, High Hopes Charters picked up dolphin and tuna on a recent outing. Boats fishing the triangle wrecks are limiting out in short order on the sea bass.

Dr. Ken Neill met Nicholas Kontodiakos at Rudee Inlet recently to certify a potentially new Virginia state record, 579 pound swordfish. Angler’s name  and details to follow from the VMRC.

The Rudee Tours head boats have offshore 17-hour fishing trips planned for October 6, 13, 20, 27 and 12-hour sea bass trips starting in November on Saturdays. They also have inshore ½ and full day trips.

Inshore, cobia are on the move. There’s only a couple of days left in the capture season; it closes September 30.

Captain Jake Beck, Knot Wish’n Charters took advantage of a weather window recently and was rewarded with some nice Spanish mackerel.

On a recent trip to the CBBT area Dr Ken Neill and crew caught sheepshead, tautog and several nice puppy drum.

There’s still large red drum around, but catches have slowed in the bay. Large drum should be feeding in surf along Sandbridge and along the wildlife refuge especially when its rough.

Speckled trout anglers are catching some quality fish. Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle reports speckled trout and puppy drum biting inside Lynnhaven Inlet, and Captain Jake Beck found a mix of specks and redfish inside Rudee Inlet as well.

Flounder fishing in the Bay has been slow.

Pier anglers on the Virginia Beach Pier are catching puppy drum, trout, some spots, pompano, small croakers and small flounder.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/09/27/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-19/

Sep 13 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • September 13, 2020

Red drum are starting to migrate out of the Bay, look for schools on the surface. As they depart surf anglers will be able to get in on the action as well. Frank Marble said the first large drum, 47 inches, was landed on the Little Island Pier in Sandbridge a couple of days ago. Look for some nice fish to be landed in the Sandbridge surf.

Cobia reports are scattered around the lower Bay. Captain Todd Beck with Knot Wish’n charters said the cobia bite should get very good along the oceanfront as they begin exiting the Bay. The cobia season closes September 30.

Anglers trolling are still finding spanish mackerel scattered in the lower bay and along the oceanfront. There are some albacore fixed in now. Captain David Wright on the High Hopes had a nice catch of Spanish last week.

Boats working off the oceanfront are picking up a few “smoker” king mackerel. The Flatline (Aquaman Charters) picked us the nice king pictured above.

Now is usually when we see some of the largest flounder of the year caught. They are biting inside the Bay and around ocean structure. The largest fish are usually caught on a live Spot. Speaking of spot, it’s time for a run of large yellow belly spot.

Speckled trout and puppy drum are feeding in Bay tributaries and area inlets. Connie at Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle said the speckled trout fishing has turned on inside Lynnhaven Inlet. Dr Ken Neill has been catching shrimp off his dock at night and fishing them on the flats near Seaford Va. He’s had good luck using artificial lures and peeler crabs but said a live shrimp was tops, can’t keep them in the water long without a hookup.

Rudee Tours, the Rudee Inlet head boats have had great success with their new fall scheduled. They are getting nice catches of black sea bass, triggerfish, spadefish, amberjacks, and flounder.

Anglers fishing off the Virginia Beach Fishing Pier are catching spot, pompano, drum, small croaker and few roundhead.

When the weather permits, offshore boats are enjoying some great billfish action. The Rebel recently caught 3 blue marlin and 12 white marlin and found time for a limit of tilefish. Look for the wahoo bite to pick up over the next few weeks.

Next Report September 28th.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/09/13/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-18/

Sep 10 2020

South Atlantic Board Releases Atlantic Cobia Draft Addendum for Public Comment

  • September 10, 2020

Arlington, VA – The Commission’s South Atlantic States/Federal Fisheries Management Board has approved for public comment Draft Addendum I to Amendment 1 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Migratory Group Cobia. The Draft Addendum was initiated in response to the 2020 quota, which is based on the results of the 2020 Atlantic cobia benchmark stock assessment. The benchmark assessment incorporated new recreational catch estimates, which were about two times higher than those previously used. The Draft Addendum considers options to change the allocation between commercial and recreational sectors, taking into consideration the change in recreational estimates. Currently 92% of the total quota is allocated to the recreational fishery, and 8% is allocated to the commercial fishery under Amendment 1.

The Commission and its member states from Maryland to Georgia will be conducting a series of public
hearings to gather public input on Draft Addendum I. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic all hearings will be conducted via webinar, with some hearings state-specific and others regionally-focused. Webinar links and call-in information are below. Please note that in order to comment during the hearings you will need to use your computer or download the GoToWebinar app for your phone (the phone numbers provided below are for listening only). Additional details on participating in the webinar can be found later in this release; this information is particularly important for those that have not used the GoToWebinar platform before.

Virginia Marine Resources Commission,September 22; 6 – 8 PM
Webinar link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6006408131526490128
Call in listen only 877.309.2074
access code: 200.660.341
Contact: Somers Smott at 757.247.2004

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/09/10/south-atlantic-board-releases-atlantic-cobia-draft-addendum-for-public-comment/

Aug 31 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • August 31, 2020

Cobia two at a time on the Healthy Grin

Starting in September, throughout the fall and winter our fishing report will be posted every other week. Be sure and check back often though because we will post breaking news and trophy fish reports as soon as they come in. Our next report will be September 14th.

Cobia are on the move as they start to head south. Dr Ken Neill has been catching them two at a time while trolling the oceanfront. A purple Rapallo has been his favored trolling lure.

Red drum are still roaming about the lower Bay and around the shoals of the Eastern Shore barrier islands. Look for them near the islands of the CBBT. Next month a northerly blow will jump start some good surf fishing action. Big bull reds will show in the surf lines along Sandbridge and the Wildlife Preserve.

Spanish mackerel, bluefish and ribbonfish trolling remains productive. Pictured is a very nice 7lb 2oz spanish mackerel caught by Jesse Thompkins of Suffolk VA.

September is typically peak king mackerel season off Virginia Beach. A number of smoker kings have already been landed and they crashed both live and trolled baits. Frank Riganto land this really nice smoker!

Flounder catches are improving. Look for them around the CBBT pilons, near the rocks that cover the tunnels and around coastal reefs and wrecks. Many are caught around the jetties at Rudee and Little Creek inlets.

As the summer give way to more temperate breezes and cooler days, folks of all ages anticipate the big run of the tastiest panfish on the Eastern seaboard, Norfolk spot. Schools of exceptionally large yellowbellies will provide non-stop bottom fishing at its finest.

Virginia Beach pier anglers can look forward to lots of spot, some croaker, sea mullet, ribbonfish, sand perch and flounder this time of year.

Offshore anglers are finding plenty of dolphin. The white marlin bite has been consistent with a few blue marlin and sailfish mixed in. The boats deep dropping are catching mostly tilefish and seabass.

David Wright, captain of the High Hopes put his crew on dolphin this week ….. then top off the trip with a sailfish release.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/31/17236/

Aug 25 2020

Mid-Atlantic Council Announces New Mobile App for Recreational Tilefish Reporting

  • August 25, 2020

MAFMC Logo

August 24, 2020

Mid-Atlantic Council Announces New Mobile App for Recreational Tilefish Reporting

eFin Logbook Provides Anglers a Simple and Convenient Reporting Tool

NOAA Fisheries recently implemented new permitting and reporting requirements for recreational tilefish fishermen. All recreational vessel operators (including for-hire operators using their vessels on recreational trips) targeting or retaining golden or blueline tilefish from Virginia to Maine are now required to obtain a free permit from NOAA Fisheries and submit electronic vessel trip reports (eVTRs) within 24 hours of returning to port.

A new app has been released to make the reporting process easy and convenient. Harbor Light Software’s eFin Logbook has received certification from NOAA Fisheries as an approved application through which anglers can report their trips. Funded by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, eFin Logbook is a user-friendly application designed specifically for recreational tilefish anglers. The app is available for use on all Apple and Android mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, Android phone, and Android tablet).

“During our initial outreach efforts, many anglers told us that the existing NOAA-approved reporting systems were too complicated for recreational reporting,” said Mid-Atlantic Council Executive Director Chris Moore. “Recreational stakeholders are generally supportive of the need for improved data collection on tilefish but have stressed the need for a simpler, more user-friendly interface. In response to this feedback, we collaborated with Harbor Light Software on the development of eFin Logbook, the first NOAA-approved electronic reporting system designed specifically for recreational fishermen.”

At present, eFin Logbook can only be used by tilefish recreational anglers to satisfy reporting requirements. Future modifications may expand its capabilities to other reporting and personal fishing log applications. For-hire operators, many of whom have other reporting requirements, are encouraged to choose different software. To learn more about other electronic reporting options and decide which one is right for you, visit the NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region Electronic Reporting Web Page.

To get started with eFin Logbook: Obtain a free permit from NOAA Fisheries, download the app from the Apple or Google Play store for free (search for “eFin Logbook”), and you will be all set to begin reporting your tilefish trips. For more information and instructions on how to get started with eFin Logbook, visit: https://www.harborlightsoftware.com/efin-logbook.

Additional Resources

 

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council
800 North State Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901
(302) 674-2331 | Toll-Free:(877) 446-2362 | Fax: (302) 674-5399

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/25/mid-atlantic-council-announces-new-mobile-app-for-recreational-tilefish-reporting/

Aug 24 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • August 24, 2020

Spanish mackerel and ribbonfish continue to keep anglers busy. Look for them along the oceanfront and near tide-rips in the Bay from Cape Henry to the mouth of the Potomac River. The spanish mackerel seem especially attracted to gold spoons paired with a #1 or #2 diving planer. Connie at Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle weighed some really large one’s last week, up to 5.5 lbs. He  said larger fish were caught using live bait on king mackerel rigs.

Ribbonfish

September is Virginia’s peak king mackerel season. Smoker kings have already been landed and they are crashing both live and trolled baits.

Dr Ken Neill

Bay anglers are still enjoying a fantastic cobia bite, they are on the move now. As they prepare to head south there should be outstanding top water action available.

Big red drum are still roaming about the lower Bay and around the shoals of the barrier islands. It is time for reds to begin showing more around the artificial islands of the CBBT. Fresh cut bait and live bait work well for this area. Big bull reds can debut in the surf lines along Sandbridge and the Wildlife Preserve at any time. A northerly blow will jump start some good drum surf fishing action.

Flounder did not disappoint this week and their numbers and size should get better through September. The CBBT, the Cell, artificial reefs and ocean wrecks are holding fish. Bucktails and strip baits work well, but live spot is best for larger flounder.

We are seeing increased catches of large speckled trout. This trend should continue into September.

Pier anglers are reporting a good spot bite. Look for spot to increase in size. Soon we’ll see coolers full of yellow bellies.

Offshore Report

Call Rudee Tours For Some Sea Bass, Tilefish Action

Ocean deep droppers are finding plenty of Seabass. Along with the seabass are golden and blueline tilefish. The Rudee Inlet headboat has 17 hour deep dropping trips planned for Aug 27 and Sep 3.

Boat load of Mahi Mahi on the High Hopes

The white marlin bite is excellent and it’s not even September yet. Charters are also picking up blue marlin, wahoo, dolphin and tuna.

Sea Toy captained by Bull Tolson based from Manteo, NC won the 17th annual Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament held out of Rudee inlet last week. 80 teams competed for a total of $620,000. The three-day event produced 429 billfish, all released. 25 blue marlin, 6 sailfish, 4 spearfish and 394 white marlins. Don’t Panic captained by Carl Beale, home-ported in Virginia Beach took second place worth $96,000. Third-place went to Full Pull, captained by Ryan Riggs and based out of Charleston, S.C. and paid $76,000.   Website Rundown https://vbbt.com/

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/24/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-17/

Aug 16 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • August 16, 2020

Knot Wish’n Charters

Larger red drum and cobia are plentiful throughout the lower bay and along the coast. Anglers are catching them sight casting or by anchoring and chumming.

Sharks are plentiful throughout the area and there are some nice kings and false albacore out there.

Anglers are also finding plenty of bluefish, ribbonfish and large spanish mackerel. The spanish can be found along the oceanfront and in the Bay from the CBBT up to Mobjack Bay and the mouths of the Rappahannock and York Rivers. Both planers and in-line sinkers and Clark or Drone spoons are working.

Hooked on Hope Virginia Beach Spanish Mackerel tournament action!

The Hooked on Hope Virginia Beach Spanish Mackerel tournament was Saturday out of Long Bay Pointe Marina. https://hookedonhopevb.org/

Look for plenty of spadefish along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and at navigational buoys in the bay and along the coast. Look for sheapshead along the CBBT span.

Paige II Charters

Flounder catches are on the rise at the CBBT and around ocean structures. Some larger ones have been caught. August through September is peak season for the flat fish.

The speckled trout bite has been excellent. Lynnhaven Inlet and Little Creek as well as Mobjack Bay, the Piankatank and Rappahannock Rivers have been good locations. In Lynnhaven Inlet and Little Creek anglers are finding puppy drum as well. The creeks along the Eastern Shore are traditionally good for Specks.

Tarpon are in the backwater holes on the Eastern Shore barrier islands, especially around Oyster.

Spot and croaker are available along bay beaches and tidal rivers. They are getting larger by the day. There have been some pretty nice sized spot caught.

Beaches and piers are seeing puppy drum, specks, croaker, spot and sea mullet.

Sea bass are available on offshore wrecks.

High Hopes Charters

Bluewater trollers can expect white marlin, some blues, wahoo, dolphin and scattered tuna. The boat Rebel out of Rudee Inlet caught and released over two dozen white marlin and a blue one-day last week. Captain David Wright, High Hopes Charters has been mixing it up offshore. He’s been successfully trolling for marlin, sailfish and dolphin then changing up and deep dropping for tilefish.

Rudee Tours, our head boat sponsor has 17 hour offshore deep drop trips scheduled for Aug 20, 27, and Sep 3.

It’s tournament time along the mid-Atlantic. The Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament out of Manteo, NC, and the Alice Kelly Memorial Women’s Only Tournament is in the books. https://www.pcbgt.com/

The Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament follows next week. https://vbbt.com/

https://www.facebook.com/140819029276/videos/2693534820933862/

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/16/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-16/

Aug 11 2020

Head Boat Report

  • August 11, 2020

Fishing on the Rudee Inlet head boat fleet has been excellent this week!

The offshore action has been hot with many citation bluelines along with some nice black sea bass and 15 golden tiles.

Inshore, we’ve seen some great croakers with a lot of spot mixed in.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/11/head-boat-report/

Aug 10 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • August 10, 2020

High Hopes Charters

This is prime billfish season along the mid-atlantic coast. White and blue marlin, sailfish, spearfish and swordfish are available now. Captain David Wright on the High Hopes says dolphin numbers are on the rise as well, with some nice gaffers available. Tuna fishing is fair, last year this is when some really big yellowfin tuna were landed to our south, in Carolina waters.

White Marlin Open Winners

The 2020 Ocean City MD White Marlin Open wrapped up Sunday night with a new tournament record fish. 433 registered boats caught fish that were collectively worth $6.7 million dollars during the weeklong event.

The top prize of over $1.6 million went to the “Canyon Blues” out of Ocean City, MD for the huge 97-pound white marlin caught by Brandon Golueke from Chester, MD on Saturday. That fish stands as the 3rd largest white marlin weighed in the 47-year White Marlin Open history.

Record setting dolphin!

Congratulations to Captain Steve Richardson and crew on the Backlash, for winning the dolphin category with a record 73.5-pounder caught by Matt Wagner. A complete list of all tournament winners can be found on the tournament website at www.whitemarlinopen.com

Inshore, spanish mackerel, blues and sharks are keeping charters busy. A gold Clark or Drone spoon seems to be working best for the mackerel. Mixed in with the spanish and blues are a large number of ribbonfish. And don’t be surprised to pick up a nice king. Several nice ones were landed close in this week. It’s always nice when the captain can get away from the helm and grab a rod, Dr Ken Neill did just that and checked in with his first ever spanish mackerel citation.

Ocean Pearl Charters

Captain Steve Wray and crew on the Ocean Pearl have been enjoying limits of blues and mackerel.

Our flounder season is officially on now. Limits of quality fish are being weighed. Jigging bucktails dressed with strip bait or a scented Gulp work well. But remember big fish like big bait. A live spot should do the trick.

VBSF sponsor Captain Craig Paige, Paige II Charters had a great catch of flatfish Aug 8th, the biggest weighed in at 7 lbs.

Cobia catches are being reported throughout the lower bay. Live eels, live spot or croaker are your best bait but they will hit artificial baits when spotted on the surface.

Red Drum are still available and should continue to be the rest of the summer.

Speckled Trout catches have been good recently.

There is good sized spot being caught in Chesapeake Bay tributaries now. Spot fishing peaks in August and September.

The Virginia Beach Pier reports nice roundheads and spots. Spanish, blues and small sharks are always a possibility.

Rudee Tours, nice tilefish

The sea bass bite remains good. Limit catches are not uncommon. Deep droppers are catching tilefish at the canyon. Rudee Tours, our head boat sponsor has 17 hour offshore trips scheduled for Aug 13, 20, 27, and Sep 3. They also run daily inshore ½ day, ¾ day, full day and night trips. Give them a call, 757-425-3400.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/10/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-15/

Aug 03 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • August 3, 2020

World class Drum fishing on the HIGH HOPES!

Fishing has been good in front of tropical storm Isaias. It looks like the storm will pass by us Monday night and Tuesday, things should settle down again by Wednesday.

There’s been some world class red drum fishing taking place in our backyard! ….. Huge schools of red drum have been surfacing in the lower Bay. As long as no one spooks them angers can sight cast. Many days everyone on the boat has been able to land and release a citation fish.

Captain Brandon Cook, 12 pounder!

Paige II Charters, large spanish and flounder to boot!

The large, doormat flounder started showing on scales last week. Fish in the 4-6 pounds range have been caught near the CBBT, the Cell and around wrecks.

Cobia on the High Hopes!

Finicky cobia are throughout the bay. Sight casting is the most productive technic now.

Good times with captain Todd on the Knot Wish’n!

Spanish mackerel schools are still thick and the fish are larger now. Anglers are trolling Drone and Clark spoons behind line sinkers or planers. The fish are scattered from Sandbridge to Cape Henry and in the bay all the way up to Reedville. Ribbonfish are feeding in the same areas and anglers are catching them on diving plugs.

Nice King Mack, 23 lbs caught by Cashin Prutsman

While not thick, there are some impressive king mackerel available in near shore ocean waters.

Spadefish are hanging around the CBBT, many ocean buoys and the Light Tower. Anglers are floating fresh clam morsels to them on small hooks. If they are not aggressively feeding, try putting some chum in the water.

Ocean structures are holding flounder, spadefish, and seabass. The deeper wrecks hold seabass, tilefish and grouper. Amberjack are around the towers.

Backlash, deepwater success! Tiles and Swords.

The charter boats are bringing in a few yellowfin tuna, mahi, swordfish and tilefish. White and blue marlin releases are on the rise.

Long Bay Pointe Marina and the Virginia Beach Fishing Center hosted the 2020 Virginia Beach Tuna Tournament over the weekend. Congratulations to the crew onboard the High Tyde, winners . Here’s the way they finished.

1 High Tyde 148.1
2 Celerity 106.1
3 Ateuptoo 89.8
4 Lorie V 89.5
5 Reelin’ N’ Dealin’ 81.3
6 Chasin Tail 69.3
7 Toro 51.9
8 Reel Estate 51.1
9 Waverunner 50.9
10 LuLu 50.6
11 Knot N Line 46.5
12 Rambler 40.7

Largest Single Tuna / High Tyde 52.7
Largest Wahoo / Fly’N Fish 71.5
Largest Dolphin / LeGrande Slam II 16.1

Who wants to be the next millionaire?

This week the tournament stage moves to Ocean City MD, for the 47th Annual White Marlin Open. As of Sunday evening 433 boats had registered to fish for a world record fishing purse of 6.7 million dollars. Anglers will target white and blue marlin, tuna, wahoo, dolphin and shark. Due to the weather forecast the tournament dates were extended by two days. Tropical storm Isaias is expected to pass by Ocean City on Tuesday. Each boat is permitted to fish any 3 days from Monday August 3 through Sunday August 9.
https://whitemarlinopen.com/

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/08/03/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-14/

Jul 27 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • July 27, 2020

Looks like another great week of fishing coming! The water temps are in the low 80’s inshore and off. The weather forecast looks good this week, with winds around 10 mph out of the southwest through Saturday. There’s a slight chance of a thunderstorm each day.

Trolling close to the beach has been producing bluefish, nice size spanish mackerel and ribbonfish. Captain Todd Beck, Knot Wish’n charters says many citation size (4lb) spanish mackerel were caught this week.

King mackerel have been spotted skying and a few have been landed.

Ocean Pearl Charters, nice spanish mackerel catch!

Team East Coast Leisure

Flounder action is good throughout the bay. Good action is coming from along CBBT, inside inlets, around the Hampton Bar and Back Reef. Team East Coast Leisure won the 10th Annual Virginia Beach Flounder Tournament this past weekend.

Rick Zimmerman and Son. 48 inch red drum at the 4th island

Red drum and cobia can be found throughout the area and many anglers are sight-casting for them. Captain Beck said Schools of bull reds have made frequently appearances on the surface this week. He said many of the cobia on the buoys willing to take a bait are undersized.

Black drum can be found around the islands of the CBBT.

Spades and triggers are available on inshore structure especially along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and at The Cell off the Eastern Shore. Sheepshead action is also good in the same locations.

Speckled trout and puppy drum are in all southside inlets, the Elizabeth, Lafayette and Back rivers.

Small croaker and spot can be found throughout the lower bay. Anglers fishing at the Virginia Beach Piers and along the beach are catching spots, roundheads and blues.

OFFSHORE BLUEWATER

Tuna, dolphin, shark and billfish are available to offshore trollers. When offshore Captain David Wright on the High Hopes like others has been trolling early and then deep-dropping for swords, tilefish, grouper, rosefish, sea bass.

Offshore wrecks and navigation structures are holding wreck donkeys, amberjack.

The Virginia Beach Tuna tournament is scheduled for this week. Weigh stations will be set up at Long Bay Pointe Marina and the Virginia Beach Fishing Center.  The captains meeting will be live streamed on Wednesday and the weigh-ins Thursday – Saturday. http://vbtuna.com/

The Virginia Beach Invitational Marlin Tournament took place this past weekend out of Rudee Inlet. Fishing started off slow but picked up. Anglers ended the tournament with 105 total releases (98 whites, 4 blues, 3 sails). The total payout was $92,355.  https://vbbt.com/

RESULTS

1st Place- Cotton Picker 1000 points
2nd Place- Sea Trader 900 points
3rd Place- Victory Lap 800 points

Top Junior angler- Adam Kilby (age 14), 6 white marlin releases on Mama C
Top Lady angler- Wendy Brockenbrough, 8 white marlin releases on Sea Trader

Day 1 daily – Victory Lap (grand slam)
Day 2 daily- Reelin N Dealin (6 releases)
Day 3 daily- Cotton Picker (7 releases)
Top tuna- 50.6 pounds on Cotton Picker
Top dolphin- 34.0 pounds on Juggernaut

Gavin Cowan (age 13) with 4 releases, and R.B. Brown (age15) with 3 releases!

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/07/27/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-13/

Jul 19 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • July 19, 2020

Paige II Charters Killing The Flounder!

This week should provide more great fishing action! The weather looks good, air temps in the upper 80’s to low 90’s and the water temp along the oceanfront a warm 82°. There’s only a slight chance of a thunderstorm each day. Lite winds and slick conditions are predicted all week.

Flounder action has picked up. They’re being caught along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and on rough Bay bottom. Many of the larger fish are being taken around near-shore wrecks and artificial reefs. Drifting flounder rigs and jigging have both been effective. Remember large baits catch big flounder. Captain Craig Paige, Paige II Charters specializes in flounder fishing. If you want to go he has a few openings the middle to end of August. They won’t last long.

Michelle Cowling, Eastern Shore Specks

Rudee, Lynnhaven, Little Creek and Eastern Shore Inlets are holding some small flounder along with a few speckled trout and puppy drum. Fresh whole shrimp under a popping cork rig is your best bet for the pups and specks.

Ocean Pearl Charters Getting It Done!

Boats trolling Clark spoons behind an in-line weight or planer along the oceanfront or near tidal rips in the Bay are catching nice spanish mackerel. Anglers working coastal wrecks are catching triggerfish.

Cobia are being caught throughout the lower Bay. Both sight-casters and angler anchoring and chumming are catching. The 2020 Virginia recreational cobia regulation is 40-inch total length, minimum size limit; 1-fish daily possession limit or 3-fish-daily vessel limit, whichever is more restrictive; only one fish per vessel per day may be greater than 50 inches in total length; the season runs through September 30. All anglers, captains, and guides fishing for cobia must obtain a Recreational Cobia Permit from the Commission and report all harvest and cobia fishing activity. Permits can be obtained online.

https://mrc.virginia.gov/regulations/fr510.shtm

Red drum are cruising the lower Bay. Occasionally anglers encounter large schools on the surface. The trick is to ease up near them without spooking them.  These fish are usually large, and must be released as they are usually over the maximum 26-inch size limit.

Sheepshead are hanging around the pilling of the CBBT now. Small crabs are your best bait. Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle usually has them in the live tank.

Spadefish remain plentiful. Look for them around buoys, pilings and over wrecks. The Chesapeake Light tower is a favorite spot but some of the larger fish are being found in the Bay, at the Cell near Cape Charles.

Croaker are available throughout the lower bay now.

Nice Spanish Off The Virginia Beach Pier!

Virginia Beach Pier anglers are reporting spanish, blues, spots, roundhead, spadefish, small trout and small founder.

The Eastern Shore shallows are holding some tarpon. Catching a tarpon in Virginia waters is special.

BLUEWATER

High Hopes Charters Mixing It Up!

The offshore fleet has been finding a few tuna, some large wahoo, white marlin, a few blue marlin and sailfish. Dolphin catches should increase. There have been some really big ones laned to our south. I look for an outstanding mahi mahi season.

Deep-droppers are enjoying excellent catches of golden and blueline tilefish, along with sea bass.

Look for amberjack around the south tower.

Rudee Angler Headboat Catching Some Nice Tilefish!

NEWS FLASH

Effective August 17, 2020 private vessels fishing for tilefish in the Mid-Atlantic must get a permit and file a catch report.

NOAA Fisheries is requiring private recreational tilefish vessels in the Mid-Atlantic to get permits and file catch reports. These changes were approved in Amendment 6 to the Tilefish Fishery Management Plan, and will be effective August 17, 2020. This action is being taken to better characterize and monitor the recreational fisheries for both blueline tilefish and golden tilefish.

You can get your federal private recreational tilefish vessel permit through Fish Online. This new permit is required even if a vessel already holds a for-hire tilefish permit. Call the NOAA Permit Office at 978-282-8438 for questions about the permitting process.

Private recreational tilefish anglers must also fill out and submit an electronic vessel trip report within 24 hours of returning to port for trips where tilefish were targeted and/or retained. Reports can be submitted through any NOAA Fisheries approved electronic reporting system.

Read the final rule as filed in the Federal Register, and the permit holder bulletin on the NOAA website.

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/07/19/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-12/

Jul 13 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • July 13, 2020

July and August are peak fishing months in our area. If I had to pick a top species this week it would be cobia.

Some extremely large cobia are cursing our waters right now. To catch one, cast, drift or slow troll live baits around buoys or underwater obstructions. You can also anchor and chum, then put out live baits in the slick. You can try fresh dead baits and cut bait on bottom under the slick. Keep an eye out for schools swimming on the surface. If you see schools of large rays, cobia are usually swimming with them. Don’t forget you need a cobia permit from VMRC to target cobia. Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle can help or you can visit the VMRC website and get one online. Its free.

Nice Spanish Fishing on the Ocean Pearl

All the VBSF charter boat sponsors are reporting nice catches of spanish mackerel. Look for them along the oceanfront and near tide rips in the bay. Ribbonfish are in the same areas. Captain Todd Beck, Knot Wish’n Charters has been catching spanish and ribbonfish and said the Marcia B caught a nice king mackerel last week.

If you want to get in on the action you need to call one of our sponsors ASAP. Word is you guys have them nearly booked solid.

Marcia B and Captain Kurt, pretty work!

Big bull red drum numbers are good this time of year. In July it’s not uncommon to find large schools feeding on the surface. Try casting bucktails to them, but just about any lure will work when they’re feeding on top. Hang on, bull drum to over 50 inches are not uncommon.

Captain Nolan Agner from Aquaman Charters says spadefish catches have slowed a bit. Most likely this is due to so many boats targeting them. If you can find an area that hasn’t been fish hard try some fresh clam, clam chum will keep them interested and up behind the boat.

Some nice flounder are being caught near the CBBT area. Any artificial reef is a good location to fish. Sheepshead are hanging around bridge pilings.

Spot and Croaker catches inside rivers are steady. Speckled Trout and puppy drum are inside Lynnhaven Inlet, more pups than trout.

Virginia Beach Fishing Pier anglers are catching spanish, sea mullet, bluefish and puppy drum.

BLUEWATER

Excellent catches of yellowfin tuna are still occurring offshore. Boats are also returning with mahi, wahoo, and bigeye tuna. Catches of blue marlin, white marlin are increasing. There’s excellent numbers of white marlin and tuna to our north, off Maryland. As these fish spread out they will start showing up on our docks. It only gets better!

Deep drop action on the Rudee Angler has been great for tilefish and seabass. Captain Nolan, Aquaman Charters reports lots of tilefish.

https://www.facebook.com/140819029276/videos/231094054514244/

 

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/07/13/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-11/

Jul 06 2020

Virginia Beach Fishing Rundown

  • July 6, 2020

Rebel

It’s time to roll, everything’s biting off Virginia Beach right now.

The offshore bluewater action is red hot! The yellowfin tuna, big eye tuna and marlin are hungry. Some really large bigeye tuna are in the mix. Cecil Hatfield fishing onboard the Showtime landed a 242 pounder. On Sunday the boat Rebel caught one blue marlin and eleven white marlin. It’s time to go guys!

Cecil Hatfield

Rudee Angler

The Rudee Angler headboat departing from the Virginia Beach Fishing Center says their deep water bottom dropping trips have been outstanding. Anglers are catching lots of tilefish, rosefish and a few snowy grouper. The VB Fishing Center Head boats also run daily inshore trips.

Spanish Action on the Ocean Pearl

Captain David Wright on the High Hopes says spanish mackerel fishing is peaking and should be very good for a few weeks. There are bluefish mixed in with the Spanish and Dr Ken Neill reports loads of ribbonfish in the same areas. Captain Steve Wray on the Ocean Pearl out of Long Bay Pointe Marina has been loading up with spanish mackerel on his morning and evening trips.

Captain Todd Beck from Knot Wish’n Guide Service out of Rudee Inlet says king mackerel have been seen jumping near the spanish schools. Shouldn’t be long before someone lays a 40 plus pound king on the deck.

Coastal wrecks, the Chesapeake Light Tower and coastal buoys are holding some really nice spadefish and triggerfish. Look for spadefish, triggerfish and sheepshead along the CBBT as well.

Big red drum and cobia also are available along the coast. Reds also are being taken around the mouth of the bay and along the shoals. A number of puppy drum have been landed near the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel.

The black drum are in Eastern Shore inlets and around the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel islands.

Nice Flounder

Flounder numbers are on the upswing, look for them inside our inlets, around inshore wrecks, along the CBBT, near the Concrete Ships, around the Back River, the Hampton Bar and Eastern Shore flats.

Cobia are being taken throughout the lower bay, most anglers are chumming and using bait, others sight-casting.

Speckled trout and puppy drum are in all three inlets and in the Elizabeth and York rivers.

Carter Baum and Henry Baum, Nice Sea Bass

David Hayden and Crew on the tiles!

On July 3rd David Hayden, Nick Skamagos, John Fantasia, Gabriel Lopez fished the Canyon and found plenty of small mahi on the surface and blueline tilefish in 325-370 ft of water.

Carter Baum and his cousin Henry Baum got in on some sea bass action last week.

Thanks for the report guys! Send those reports and pictures to [email protected]

Permanent link to this article: https://vbsf.net/2020/07/06/virginia-beach-fishing-rundown-10/